Second Amendment 101: Texas moves to allow guns at universities

A law restricting universities from banning the concealed carrying of handguns on campus received preliminary approval by Texas legislators. House Democrats tried to stall the vote on the bill, but gave up just minutes before the deadline.

The “campus carry” law, or Senate Bill 11, received preliminary approval
by a 101-47 vote, after House Republicans added amendments
exempting hospitals and allowing universities to establish
limited gun-free areas. Another amendment said that private
colleges would have to follow the lead of public universities
concerning the measure, reported the Texas Tribune.

Current laws allow Texans to carry handguns onto college
campuses, but ban weapons from dormitories, cafeterias and
classrooms. The new bill would retain the prohibition of weapons
at sporting events and in campus hospitals.

Proponents of the bill argue that continuing to ban handguns
infringes upon the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding
citizens, and leaves them without the means of self-defense in
case of an attack.

In addition to Democratic lawmakers, the leading voice of
opposition is the University of Texas System Chancellor William
McRaven, a retired US Navy Admiral formerly in charge of the
Special Operations Command (SOCOM).

After the Texas Senate approved its version of the bill in
January, by a 20-11 vote, McRaven wrote to the lawmakers arguing that allowing
guns on campuses would “lead to an increase in both
accidental shootings and self-inflicted wounds.”

McRaven also said that allowing guns in the classroom would have
a chilling effect on interactions between teachers and students.

If any state can be responsible with #campuscarry,
it's Texas. Interested to see where this goes.

Students for Concealed Carry, a group backing the law, say
McRaven’s fears are unfounded. “More than 150 US college
campuses currently allow licensed concealed carry and have done
so for an average of five years, without a single resulting
assault, suicide attempt, or accidental death,” the group
argues.

Professors should be less concerned about angering a student who
might secretly be a “trained, tested, carefully vetted license
holder” legally carrying a gun, and more about students who are
untrained, untested, not vetted and carrying a weapon illegally,
they say.

“What is the benefit of a state law or school policy that
stacks the odds in favor of any criminal or psychopath willing to
ignore state law and school policy?” the group asks.

Most students would be too young to qualify for the concealed
carry permit, since Texas law restricts eligibility to persons 21
or older, unless they are active-duty or former military.

The bill still needs to receive final approval in the House. If
adopted and signed into law, it would take effect in September.